Vatican City
The smallest country in the world offers the heart of Catholicism and among the
world's finest art collections, including the Sistine Chapel and the Raphael
Rooms (ceiling pictured). Go to Vatican City!

Austria
Belvedere Palace (pictured) is just one of many palaces found in Vienna. The capital
is a good start to Austria, which also features the Alps, the Lakes District, and
incredible history & food. Go Now!

Ukraine
Ukrainian culture is based on village life, particularly that found in the Carpathian
Mountains (pictured). Begin Your Journey!

History of Italy

In early history, Italy was essentially just city-states with
numerous groups rising and falling from power, but none ever dominating the entire
region. As close as any came were the Etruscans in modern-day Tuscany and the Greeks in the south, that is, until Rome emerged in about
500 BC.

Rome slowly gained power from 500 BC on. Their government was revolutionary as they
had a senate and political and military consuls ran the government. This system
also allowed more social mobility than most governments at the time and class differences
were, relatively, based more on economic standing than on personal connections,
although the latter was never eliminated. The Romans also adopted many of the Etruscans'
and Greeks' knowledge from writing and monetary units to the
Greek system of gods.

By 100 BC Rome was arguably the most important city in the world and in the same
year Julius Caesar was born. Caesar changed Roman politics by essentially destroying
the Senate and leading the country into a dictatorial government for years to come,
but this didn't wane Rome's power over the Mediterranean and the world.
Rome continued to expand into Africa and the
Middle East, peaking in size in about 115 AD.

In 313, Christianity and all religions were free to be practiced in the empire,
but a few years later, in 330 the empire split in two, with the western capital
in Rome and the eastern in Constantinople (Istanbul, Turkey).

Rome slowly deteriorated, but was saved by the Catholic Church, when in 800 the
church crowned Charlemagne the Emperor of the Holy Roman Empire in exchange for
giving the church power in Rome and throughout the empire. The church offered Charlemagne
power in that they controlled a unifying force, Christianity, which much of
Europe had converted to by this point. However, it also shifted power from
Rome to France and severed ties with Constantinople, putting
Rome itself, and much of present-day Italy in further decline.

For centuries after this time, much of Italy fell under the
rule of the Holy Roman Empire, but various city-states maintained much independence
and self-rule. As the Holy Roman Emperors and the Popes fought over power, each
city-state sided with whomever would give them more autonomy, creating further division,
but also seeing the rise of prosperity to numerous cities such as Venice and Florence
(to learn more about the history of the pope, Vatican City,
and the Papal States, read the History of Vatican City).

During this period, until the 1400s there was generally no united country, but small
independent states, often times at war with each other as power struggles regularly
erupted.

Beginning in 1453 with the immigration of Byzantium scholars, Italy,
particularly Florence became the center of the Renaissance, which brought new architectural
styles, arts, and thinking to first Italy, then much of Europe.

After the Renaissance, Italy again fell into the pattern of
small city-states fighting each other as unity fell to an afterthought. These became
either independent states or fell under the influence of Spanish
or French rulers. Even after the people wanted unification,
it was a long uphill battle, which wasn't completed until 1861, although this
was only on paper as more regions and groundwork had to be incorporated.

At the outbreak of World War I Italy tried to avoid siding
with its allies, Austria and Germany.
Eventually Italy sided with the United Kingdom in
order to get independence after the war, but after the war Italy didn't get
all the territories they sought. This put Italy squarely on the same page as other
countries which felt neglected by the Treaty of Versailles: Germany and Austria.

In World War II the Italians sided with Nazi
Germany, but the military was underprepared and underequipped, plus most
of the soldiers had no true motivation to fight, making the army a mess that was
continuously saved by the Nazis. As the war neared an end, the
American front moved up the peninsula and many towns viewed this as a liberation
from their fascist government.

After the war, due to the Marshall Plan, Italy worked with
France and Germany to rebuild
Europe and create a new future. Although the 1900s weren't always a
smooth transition, Italy eventually became a leading member in the formation of
the European Union (EU) and today continues to be an influential member of the EU.